Incarceration

One Man’s Story Highlights the Elements that Create – and Prevent – Killers

Writer Kim Whiting recounts the story of her friend, Tay Ramey. Once a gifted child, Tay was shaped by abuse, community violence, and a sense that he did not belong in the wider world. Tay was serving a life sentence for murder in California before his death in 2020. His story illustrates, Whiting says, how traumatic experiences and low self-worth can lead people toward violence. It also shows, she argues, that the alternative--being seen and loved--can foster healing. It's a Reporters Inc. Original.